Those of you who still have one of these mounts my condolences. Mine is great in alt/az mode with no slop in the bearing(haven't tried more than a TV85 on it) but I had hoped to do some wide field astrophotography. We all know the problems with EQ mode so I either use it for what it can do, sell it at a big loss, or use it for a boat anchor.

Anyways I finally had some time today and have two easy fixes, one for the cheap 12v connector and jack and one to stow the hand paddle.

Just used a few pieces of Velcro. The power cord rotates with the telescope and the jack is already loose. I've accidently have pulled it out and it's frustrating to have to realign two or three times in a session. I just ran the cord up over the top held with Velcro. It now rotates with the scope with no stress on the connection.

The other was to finally find a place to stow the hand paddle. There really is only one place I found by trial and error: on the smooth side of the "wedge" opposite the latitude scale. It's sideways but stays put as the scope slews.

I decided the best way around the LX80 problems was not to buy one. I am holding out hope now that the new Orion Atlas AZ/EQ will turn out to be what the LX80 was supposed to be, a great all-in-one GoTo scope that works and can actually handle the weight the manufacturer claims it can handle. We shall see.

I usually wait until a product has proven itself, but Meade suckered me in when they raised the price before it was even released. Hmmm, do I save $200 bucks now and take a chance? It must be good, right? Why else would they raise the price if it wasn't everything Meade promised it was?

Sucker! :sweat:

Wish I had held out but now I have to make the best of it. How much more will the Orion have to be to reach the advertised specs? I had great luck with an old LX200 classic but after this debacle Meade will never get any more money out of me. And I have a few good $$ years left-you listening Meade? They probably are but don't care.